HIGH-LEVEL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON

"COUNTERING TERRORISM AND PREVENTING VIOLENT EXTREMISM"

Co-organizers of event:

Co-sponsors of event:

WELCOME ADDRESSES

Minister of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Tajikistan

Dear participants,

It is a great honour to extend a warm welcome to you for the participation at the High-level International Conference “Countering Terrorism and Preventing Violent Extremism”, which is organized by the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan in cooperation with the United Nations, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe and the European Union.Today the greatest global security challenges are terrorism, radicalism and violent extremism. These challenges are hitting irreparable damage to the efforts of the international community to maintain peace and security. In order to prevent and eliminate violence caused by terrorist acts the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy (UNGCTS), also launched the Plan of Action on Preventing Violent Extremism (PVE) in 2016 and in that framework Tajikistan developed its National Strategy on Countering Terrorism and Extremism (NSCTE) for the period of 2016-2020, adopted on 12 November 2016 as an instrument aimed at the solving aforementioned issues. These measures are taken in order to enhance capacity for the combating terrorism, radicalization and violent extremism. I am convinced that participants will significantly contribute to the achievement of the ambitious goals and objectives of the Conference such as creating a general recognition of the negative impact and consequences of the current challenges; exploring possibilities for strengthening partnership and cooperation at all levels and exchanging experiences in countering terrorism and preventing violent extremism.Wish you all the best and enjoyable visit to Tajikistan.

Sincerely,

Sirodjidin Aslov, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Tajikistan

Ambassador OSCE Secretary General

Dear participants,

A warm welcome also from the OSCE which is co-operating with the Government of the Republic of Tajikistan as well as with the United Nations and the European Union in the organization of this event.

The OSCE Secretariat in Vienna is working closely with the OSCE Programme Office in Dushanbe to assist the Republic of Tajikistan and its partners represented at this High-level International Conference in developing comprehensive, nuanced and internationally co-ordinated responses to terrorism.

The OSCE’s comprehensive approach to security includes work to prevent violent extremism and radicalization that lead to terrorism (VERLT). Our commitment to preventing VERLT reflects the growing awareness that law enforcement measures alone are insufficient without parallel efforts that focus on prevention. It is critical to understand why individuals are willing to commit their lives to a violent extremist cause and thus to work out the most effective solutions for addressing and mitigating the grievances pushing them in that direction. Accordingly, successful VERLT initiatives are rooted in a whole-of-society approach.

In addition to its VERLT portfolio, the OSCE continues to offer its assistance in strengthening international legal co-operation in terrorism cases, countering the financing of terrorism and the abuse of the Internet for terrorist purposes, protecting critical energy infrastructure, as well as in safeguarding human rights in counter-terrorism investigations.

We are aware that no country can tackle this complex issue on its own. We need a global and co-ordinated response involving both governments and non-governmental actors, as represented here today.

I am certain that this conference will contribute to the development of effective and human rights compliant approaches to countering terrorism and preventing violent extremism and look forward to our discussions.